The lockdown was an unrealistic experience for most of us.
But during this period, some people picked up all sorts of hobbies while they had nothing but time on their hands, and a few people (mostly family) to spend it with.
That’s what one musician did.
While most people tend to go with baking or cooking, Ryan Stokes from New Zealand had set a different path for bonding time with his parents.
He wanted to “jam” with them.
Since he could not invite his friends over during lockdown, he decided to teach his parents how to play instruments so he could jam with them.
What started as a simple project to kill the time during the pandemic has since grown into something that none of them anticipated.
He shared how this started.
Inspired by the White Stripes, a two-piece rock band, Ryan, 20 years old, initially taught his 55-year-old mom the drums.
Two months later, his 60-year-old dad followed and picked the electric bass guitar for the first time.
And as they say, the rest is history.
Mommas Boy
Their band is named “Mommas Boy,” where Ryan is the frontman vocalist.
His mom Andrea is on drums, and his father Lyndon strums and plucks the bass.
“They were pestered to start the band by their very eager son,” joked Ryan, who was born in Hamilton, Scotland.
“I had nothing to do during the lockdown and wanted to play music.”
He got his wish.
His mom took inspiration from Meg White, the drummer, and vocalist of White Stripes, and was very excited to learn to drum like her.
Andrea got the basics quickly.
Soon after, she was ready to play for hours.
Although they’ve been playing for a couple of years now, the rockstar parents seamlessly adapted to the new life of Rock And Roll.
TikTok is where they’ve made the most appearances, where the band has more than 72,000 followers, just hours after picking up their instruments for the first time.
Ryan- who is a student, and his parents who both work local government jobs, were shocked at the popularity Mommas Boy has gained.
The love and support they get are phenomenal.
“Mumma Drummer”
That’s what his mom is commonly called at work.
His father is constantly blown away by the positive responses online.
He was very hesitant in engaging on Social Media since he thought of it as a negative environment.
Although they have no record label yet, the band put together an album in just a month from inside Ryan’s bedroom-turned-studio.
“Who Would Have Thought”
That was the name of their first album and got released on the band’s Spotify account.
They also had the opportunity to play live on some occasions.
Ryan’s mom constantly said that she was not good enough to perform live shows and his dad was not that optimistic.
However, after they completed their first show, they were thrilled and are now excited for the next one.
“We always bonded over our shared love of music. Now we can bond over our shared love of making music,” Ryan said.
Their musical taste is the exact same, which has been the foundation of their band and bond as a family.
See Ryan and his parents rock out their rendition of ‘Hey Joe’ in the video below!
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